Mail-bag catcher and deliverer.



H. M'. MERIDA.

MAIL BAG CATCHER AND DEUVERER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. I0. 1911.

1,292,502}. Patented Jan. 28, 1919.

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. 13 f/' 16 Z 25' m i V 0 M I34 [h 59 /7 INVENTOH l afiaff MMer-idd WITNESSES w I BY 1 ATTORNEY HOBART M. MERIDA, OF SPICELAND, INDIANA.

MAIL-BAG CATCHER AND DELIVERER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed March 10, 1917. Serial No. 153,969.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, I'IOBART M. MERIDA, a citizen of the United States, residing at S iceland, in the county of Henry and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mail-Bag Catchers and Deliverers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in mail bag catchers and deliverers for use in connection with moving trains.

The main object of the invention is to provide a simply constructed and efficient apparatus of this character carried by a train which will automatically receive and deliver mail bags while the train is moving.

Another object is to provide a substitute holder for the mail bags at the station to take the place of the usual crane.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed may be made with in the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 represents a side elevation of a mail bag catcher and deliverer constructed in accordance with this invention and shown applied, and in the act of receiving and delivering mail at a station, one side wall of the receiving box being omitted to disclose the interior thereof, arts being broken away and in section, and

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1.

Figs. 3 and 4 are detail sectional views.

In the embodiment illustrated, a portion of a mail car C is shown having the usual door opening D, at one side of which is secured a laterally projecting arm 1 on which this improved train carried apparatus is designed to be mounted. This arm may be made foldable or not as desired.

The improved catcher and deliverer constituting this invention comprises a support ing frame 2 composed preferably of metal arms in the form of bars 3 and 4 connected at their inner ends as shown at 5, said bars inclining downwardly and outwardly from said point of connection. An upstanding supporting rod 6 is here shown bolted between the meeting ends of the bars 3 and 4: and has a hook 7 at its upper end for detachable engagement with the arm 1 carried by the side of the car. This rod 6 is designed to detachably support the frame 2 at the side of the car and may be placed in position when, the train is approaching a station at which it is desired to deliver and collect mail, or it may remain in this position at all times.

The bar 3 which constitutes the front member of frame 2 is preferably folded upon itself midway its ends and the folded portion thereof bolted together throughout the greater portion of its length, the said members of said folded bar being spaced apart at their outer or folded ends to receive between them a depending pivotally mounted arm 8, the function of which will be hereinafter described.

The bar 4 is also folded midway its length and the side members t and 1 thereof, are spaced apart throughout the greater ortion of the length of said bar to form a 00 and are provided with oppositely dispose bearings in which is mounted a shaft 9. Fixed to this shaft 9 is a ratchet wheel 10 with which is designed to cooperate a dog 11 carried by a disk 12 loosely mounted on said shaft. Coiled springs 13 and 14 are wound on said shaft on opposite sides of the ratchet 10 and disk 12, the spring 13 having one end engaged with the side member 4 of the folded bar 4, and its other end engaged with a mail bag delivery hook 15, one end of which is fixed to shaft 9, said spring operating to turn said shaft and normally release the hook or throw it into open position, it being locked against this movement by the engagement of the dog 11 with the ratchet 10 and when said dog is released this hook will under the tension of spring 13,fiy back automatically into open released position and thereby deliver the mail bags which are carried thereon at the place of deposit desired as will be hereinafter more fully described.

The coiled spring let has one end engaged with the side bar 1 and its other end engaged with the disk 12 and exerts its tension to normally turn said disk in a direction opposite to the turning direction of the ratchet wheel 10.

A bag receiving member 16 is here shown in the form of a pair of curved hooks pivotally connected at one end with the inner end of bar 3 and which are designed to open Patented Jan. 28, 1919.

vance of shaft 17 so that said springs exert their tension to force said bag receiver downwardly into locking position.

This bag receiving member 16 has a cross bar 20 spanning the space between the inner ends of the hooks thereof and which is designed to be engaged by a catch 21 when in open position whereby said member 16 is held open. This catch 21 is carried by one end of a bell crank lever 22 fulcrumed between the side members of the bar 3 at the rear of shaft 17 so that when said member 16 is open, this catch 21 will engage the cross bar 20 and hold said member in open position against the tension of the springs 18 and 19. The lever 22 depends below bar 3 and a forwardly extending arm 23 is connected with its lower end. This arm 23 is slotted longitudinally at 2 1 and 25, slot 24 which is formed midway the ends thereof being slidably engaged with a headed stud 26 which projects upwardly from a bracket 27 depending from frame 2. The other slot 25 of said arm, which-is positioned near its free front end has extended therethrough one arm 28 of bracket 27 and which operates as a guide for the arm 23 and prevents lateral displacement thereof.

This bracket 27 is substantially U-shaped in form and the other arm 29 thereof projects above bar t, being preferably disposed between'the side members a and a thereof,

r and has an eye 30 at its projecting end through which a cable 31 passes, said eye forming a guide for the cable. This cable 31 is secured at one end to the bag receiving member 16 near its pivoted end and at its otherend is connected with the dog 11, being designed to release said dog from its engagement on the ratchet 10 when the member 16 is swung forwardly, into closing position. This release of dog 11 permits shaft 9 to rotate under the action ofspring 13 and thereby swing the bag delivery hook 15 inwardly and downwardly to cause the mail bags carried thereby to be released and to drop below into asuitable receptacle as will be presently described.

A cross bar or rod 32 is disposed within the members 1 and r at the rear of shaft 9and is designed to operate as a stop for limiting the opening movement of the bag delivery member 15.

From the above description it will be obvious that when this device is mounted on the arm 1 outside the car door, and the bag receiving member 16 swung upwardly into the position shown in Fig. 1, and engaged by the catch 21, and the member 15 is swung upwardly with the bags to be delivered carried thereby, that when the arm 8 which is pivotally mounted at the front end of the frame 2 engages an obstruction disposed in its path, said arm will be swung inwardly and will be forced into contact with the forward end of the lever arm 23, said arm 23 being preferably provided with a laterally extendingloop-shaped head 23 so as to insure its engagement by the inward movement of arm 8. This forcible inward movement of arm 23 will cause the bell crank lever 22 to rock on its fulcrum to thereby disengage catch 21 from the bag receiving member 16 thereby releasing said member, which under the action of the springs 18 and 19 will swing quickly downward into closed position thereby trapping the mail bag which has passed over the upper edge of arm 3 and thus securely hold said bag in engagement with frame 2. This forward and downward swinging of the member 16 operates to disconnect dog 11 from the ratchet wheel 10 thereby releasing said wheel and the shaft to which it is fixed whereby the mail bag carrying member 15 will swing downwardly and inwardly under the action of spring 13, thereby delivering the bags from said member dropping them into a receptacle disposed at the side of the track and which will pres. ently be described. After the train has passed the statiomthe operator within the car on which this device is mounted may disconnect the frame 2 from the arm 1 and 1e move it into the car to facilitate the removal of the mail bag from the member 16 and after it has been removed, the apparatus may be again set and positioned outside the door ready for collecting and delivering mail at the next station. v

This train carried delivering and catching apparatus is designed especially for cot$peration with a box 35 which is provided at the station in lieu of the usual crane and which may be constructed of any suitable material preferably of metal and which is disposed at the station adjacent the track and which the train carrying the apparatus above described is to pass. This box 35. is open at both ends and has a slot 36 extending longitudinally throughout the top thereof to provide for the free passage of the rod 6 which supports frame 2 of the train carried mechanism. I I 2 Depending from the top of this box on opposite sides of slot 36 therein, are two forwardly opening hook-shaped brackets 37 and 38 which are designed to support the mail bags to be delivered to the train, it belng understood that these bags are stretched across said brackets so that when the train passes the apparatus above described will enter at one open end of the box and pass longitudinally therethrough, the depending arm 8 during this passage coming in engagement with a cross barv 39 disposed below brackets 37 andSS whereby the hook-shaped receiving member 16 will be caused to close over the mail bag supported on said brackets 37 and 38 in the manner above described and the continued movement of the train forward will then cause the train carried apparatus to pass outwardly at the opposite end of the box, it being understood that the delivery crane or hook 15 has been simultaneously actuated in the closing of the member 16 to release the mail bags carried by said crane 15 and deposit them within the box 35 from which they may be removed after the train has passed.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, the advantages .of the construction and of the method of operation will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art to which the invention appertains and while I have described the principle of operation of the invention together with the device which I now consider to be the best embodiment thereof, I desire to have it understood that the device shown is merely illustrative and that such changes may be made as are within the scope of the claimed invention.

I claim:

1. A mail bag delivery and receiving apparatus including a supporting frame, an upwardly opening receiving member, means for closin the receiving member, means for holding the receiving member open, means operable by the engagement therewith of an obstruction for releasing the holding means for the receiving member, a delivery member opening downwardly, a spring to facilitate .the opening of said delivery member, means for holding said delivery member closed,

and a connection between said receiving member and the holding means for the delivery member whereby the closin of the receiving member will operate tore ease the delivery member.

2. A mail delivery and receiving apparatus including a supporting frame, an upwardly opening receiving member and a downwardly opening delivery member carried thereby, a dog and ratchet mechanism for holding said delivery member closed, means for closing the receiving member, means for holding said receiving member open, means for releasing the receiving member, and a connection between said dog and ratchet mechanism and said receivincr member for releasing said delivery member on the closing of said receiving member.

3. A mall bag delivery and recelving apagainst the tension of its cilosing means, a.

spring exerting its tension to open said downwardly opening member, means operable by engagement with an obstruction for releasingv the holdinrr means for said upwardly opening member, means for holding the delivery member closed against the action of its spring, and a connection between said receiving member and said holding means operating to release said downwardly opening member on the closing of said upwardly opening member.

4. A mail bag delivery and receiving apparatus including a supporting frame, a hook-shaped receiving member pivotally mounted at one end to open upwardly from said frame, a spring for normally forcing said member into closed position, means for holding said member in open position against the tension of its spring, an oscillating trip member positioned for actuation by an obstructing object to release said holding means, a spring opened delivery member said member in closed position against the tension of its spring and a connection be-- tween the receiving member and the means for holding the delivery member in closed position whereby the closing of the receiving member will release the delivery mem- 5. A mail bag delivery and receiving apparatus including a supporting frame comprising a suspension member, arms extending laterally therefrom in opposite directions and inclined downwardly toward their free ends, an upwardly opening receiving member pivotally mounted on one of said arms with its free end extending toward the free end of said arm, a spring for normally closing said member, a catch for holding said member in open position against the tension of its spring, a trip member for releasing said catch, means for actuating said trip member cOmpriSing a pivotally mounted arm depending from the free end of said arm which carries the receiving member, a downwardly opening delivery member carried by the other arm of said frame, means for holding the delivery member in closed position, and a connection between the receiving member and the holding means for the delivery member whereby the closing of the receiving member will operate to release the delivery member.

6. A mail delivery and receiving apparatus including a supporting frame compris- 1ng a rod having a support engaging hook at one end and laterally extending downwardly inclined arms at its other end, a downwardly Closing bag receiving member mounted on one of said arms, a downwardly opening bag delivery member mounted on the other arm thereof, springs connected with said mem-. here for closing one and opening the other, means for holding the receiving member open against the tension of its spring, means for holding the delivery member closed against the action of its spring, releasing means for the delivery member, and means whereby the closing of the downwardly clos ing member operates to release the upwardly closing member.

7. A mail bag receiving apparatus including a s'upport, an inwardly swinging bar pivotally mounted on said support, a'spring pressed downwardly closing receiving member mounted on said support, a catch for holdingsaid member in open position against the tension'of its spring, a bracket depend ing from said support, and a releasing member slidably mounted on said bracket and positioned in the path of said inwardly swinging bar whereby said catch is released on the inward swinging ofsaid bar.

8. A mail bag catcher including a frame for suspension from a mail oar provided with a spring closed receiving member, a' catch for holding said receiving member open against the tension of its spring, agtrip gea nected to actuate said catch; and e i-vet ally mounted 'arm' 'dependiiig froni said frame in advance of said catoh' operating trip and in position to engage it when said arm is' swung inwardly to release the eaten;

In testimony whereof I afiix' signature in presence of two witnesses.

HOBART M. MERIDA.

Witnesses 1 r JOHN R. Wises; A. L.

Copies of this patent may be obtained. for hire cents each, by addressing the Commissioner or fatenta, Washington, D. G. 

